むかし、かつて上狩野の旧家に菊三郎という人物がいた。
Once upon a time, there lived a man named Kikusaburō in an old family in Kamikarino.
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He didnt do anything wrong, but it was hard to call him a diligent person, and he was often chased by creditors in his daily life.
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However, because he loved nature more than anyone else, he didnt care much about making a living and lived a free and easy life.
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One day, Kikuzaburō finally had no choice but to sell the mountain that had been passed down in his family for generations in order to pay off his debts, and he decided to climb the mountain before selling it.
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On the way, he slipped and fell off a cliff, plunging into the river in the valley below. Enchanted by the clear water and the sound of Kajika frogs echoing around him, Kikusaburō gradually sank into a hazy state.
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Just then, someone suddenly tapped him on the shoulder, and when he looked up, there stood a mysterious old man he had never seen before.
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The old man said, I am the chief of the crocodiles who live in Kawajikazawa.
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If the mountain you are trying to sell falls into someone elses hands, the trees will be cut down, the valleys will dry up, and even the streams will be washed away with muddy water.
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If that happens, we crocodiles will be driven out of this place. Please, don’t sell this mountain.
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Those words deeply moved Kikusaburō.
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When I came to, the old man had disappeared, but he muttered, Understood, and left the mountain.
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When he returned home, Kikuzaburō sold all the furniture, calligraphy scrolls, and antiques in his house, and somehow managed to protect Kawaji Kazawas mountain from falling into someone elses hands.
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その晩、涼風の吹き抜ける夜、菊三郎が眠りに就くと、夢と現実の狭間でカジカの鳴き声に囲まれながら目を覚ました彼の目に、縁側から枕元にかけて点々と濡れた足跡が続いている光景が映った。
さらに、白い枕屏風の表面には、いつの間にか墨の鮮やかさを保ったまま、カジカが谷間で戯れる様子が生き生きと描かれていたのである。
この屏風に描かれたカジカの群れは、観る者に言葉では言い尽くせない不思議な感動を与えた。
やがて河鹿屏風の噂は人々の間で広まり、都から訪れた著名な絵師もその出来栄えに驚嘆し、千両箱を携えて屏風の譲渡を求める者まで現れた。
しかし、菊三郎は決してこの屏風を手放すことはなかった。
その後、菊三郎は屏風を売ることなく、むしろ仕事に励み始めたという。
やがて歳月が流れ、菊三郎が老いて世を去ると、奇妙なことに河鹿屏風の色彩も徐々に褪せ、数年のうちに絵は完全に消えてしまったと伝えられている。
今なお、浄蓮の滝の上方、河鹿沢の渓流では、カジカの美しい鳴き声が絶え間なく響き渡り、往時の伝説を静かに物語っているのである。
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